March 22.
The members of the British Chamber of Commerce, the China Association and the British Residents' Association elect on the pre~ seribed occasion annually—committees to perform executive functions on their behalf. Those committees are virtually leaders of their respective organizations. And the three bodies in question cover: the British community as a whole as completely as it can be covered the representative sense, It is true that hitherto international municipal polities have been Ignored by at least one of these organizations, as correspondents have pointed out. Yet the Executive Committee of the British Residents' Association, before now. has given its members a clear lead the direction in which votes should be cast as between con testants for coats in the Municipal Council. This year, admittedly, an exceptional step was taken, The Snpanese had occasion to get into touch with representative British opinion in regard to the convention whereby two seats were allotted to japanese candidates. The Japfanese desire to extend their representation to three (or more) Feats had to be met, The leaders} ff the three British bodies. wore therefore consulted and on the understanding that the Japanese would put up only two candidates uumual, gave an assurance that five seats usually allotted to the British would be required as before and that a strong British vote, it necessary, would emphasize that fact. Tt was not thought likely that election would accrue, partiularly as there was considerable Gimeulty in inducing the requisite number of British candidates to stand, Wisdom after the event may suggest that the British spokesmen might have been better advised to summon special general meetings of all their organizations to obtain formal endorsement of the "ticket" system which would have to be! applied if polling came to be necessary. In point of fact this procedure was virtually impossible for time hardly permitted it to be! put Into practical operation. The British spokesmen, in other words the three Executive Committees, realized that they were faced with a sudden emergency and in that emergency took emergency, action 'Although, as already hinted, the committees' were not elected with the express purpose of choosing British candidates for the Municipal Election, it will be seen that as a representative British opinion was required, the Japanese were reasonable in assuming that in approaching stich bodies an authoritative answer could be obtained. Nor coan it be denied that if the answer! had not been forthcoming the British community might well have charged its three most responsible organizations with lack of leader-¢hip and apathy. In commending the Ave "ticket" candidates to the electorate the British spokesmen were plainly actuated by the convietion that, it was necessary to show the residents of the Settlement and particularly the Japanese that British interest in municipal affairs for
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.